Afghan officials say at least 15 civilians have been killed in a NATO air-strike south-east of the capital Kabul, but NATO denies the raid claimed any civilian lives.

The airstrike targeted a home in eastern Logar province in the early hours of Wednesday morning (local time).

It was ordered after NATO troops came under fire as they tried to detain a Taliban leader.

Afghan police say at least 15 people, including women and children, were killed.

But NATO says only a number of militants were killed.

It says two women were also injured, but they are now receiving medical treatment.

The differing accounts of militant and civilian casualties cannot be verified, but an AFP journalist reported seeing at least 15 bodies - including those of four children.

Civilian casualties have made night raids controversial and they remain a source of friction between NATO and the Afghan government.

President Hamid Karzai has repeatedly warned against civilian casualties in military operations.

He said last month that a strategic partnership agreement signed with the United States was at risk of becoming "meaningless" if Afghans did not feel safe.

The number of civilians killed in Afghanistan's war has risen steadily each year for the past five years, reaching a record of 3,021 in 2011, the great majority caused by militants, according to UN statistics.

News of the raid came as a suicide motorcycle bombing killed 21 people and wounded 22 others in Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar.